A fire late Monday night damaged the exterior of the building that houses Dianne’s Fish Shack & Smokehouse and the RCHA Club in downtown Kingston, Ontario, at the corner of Ontario and Clarence Streets. No one was hurt, and the flames were kept from spreading inside.
Kingston Fire & Rescue crews were called to 195 Ontario Street around 11:45 p.m. on August 3, 2026, after a fire broke out in an exterior garbage storage alcove on lower Clarence Street. The area contained large plastic garbage bins and some HVAC units. The concrete walls of the alcove helped contain the fire, and firefighters confirmed there was no smoke or fire inside the building.
Damage is estimated at $20,000, and the cause of the fire remains undetermined. Dianne’s management, in a Facebook post, credited the quick actions of neighbors at Woodenheads Gourmet Pizza and a speedy fire department response with preventing a more serious outcome.
Both businesses were temporarily closed by the incident. Dianne’s reopened on Wednesday, August 5, 2026, after just one day of closure. The RCHA Club, a downtown landmark since 1947, has not yet announced when it will reopen.
